Size no barrier for SME CMYA winners

Among the prestigious winners of the CIOB Construction Manager of the Year Awards (CMYA), staff working for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) continue to punch above their weight among the larger companies and projects. 

This includes Andrew Deacon, project manager for Linear Design and Construct, who earlier this year won the Gold Winner in the Low Rise Accommodation category for the redevelopment of Lancefield Quay in central Glasgow.

In late 2019, 22 of the 92 apartments in the iconic block were damaged by fire. Linear Design and Construct were appointed to undertake the complete reinstatement works on the fire-damaged properties, with Andrew Deacon appointed as project manager. The project team moved to site at the end of September 2020 to begin restoring the structural elements of the building to ensure that any fire related sections were fully analysed and repaired.

The properties were a combination of one, two and three bedroom apartments with balconies and conservatories. The tender originally called for all apartments to be reinstated in a standardised way, with white walls and identical fittings, but it was decided to give residents individual control over their apartments. “There isn't two of those flats that are identical, absolutely everything's bespoke to each property,” he says. 

While the number of individual clients involved made the project more complex, it also increased the significance of the work for Andrew. “You have all these individuals’ homes that you're trying to reinstate, so as much as you've got a job to do, it's one of those projects that stands out because of what it means to everyone involved,” he says.

The work was also undertaken during the second half of the Covid pandemic, further complicating work. As many showrooms were closed, a temporary facility was erected in the building’s carpark to allow residents to view the various internal finishes such as flooring and tiles available. Residents were also able to book one-to-one appointments at a nearby bathroom and kitchen showroom, which created 3D models to help visualise the repairs.

Being a smaller, more agile company made it easier for Andrew and his team to adapt to each request, even going out of their way to find a supplier able to recreate a door that one resident had seen while on holiday. 

Awards 

The project was put forward as it was technically complex and built in a tricky environment. “This achievement shows that you don't need to be a big company to be able to go and deliver that type of complex project,” Andrew says.

He adds that the award was as much for the team and project as for his own work. “I've stood there and picked up an award for what isn't my sole achievement. It's an achievement for Linear, for everyone who's involved in that project, the client team and the supply chain.”

Andrew says his and other SMEs’ success at the awards showed it wasn’t just for Tier 1 contractors. 

“If you’ve had a good project and you've managed it well, you're certainly not going to be overlooked,” he says. “If you can demonstrate what you can do then everyone's in with a chance of winning it.”

Being at the awards evening was also a great experience, Andrew says, as it put him in the room with representatives from across the industry. 

“I spoke to a wide range of people, a lot of them who are also from SMEs,” he says. “There's a lot of highly complex and interesting projects that people have been involved in outside of the tier 1 contractors. A wide range of people from lecturers at universities, some who worked in modular off-site construction to companies who had completed heritage restoration projects.”